Work ban at Tongaat mall site

The collapse of the Tongaat Mall is being investigated.

The collapse of the Tongaat Mall is being investigated.

Published Dec 8, 2014

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Durban - Rectangle Property Investments, which owns the partially collapsed Tongaat mall, has been interdicted from doing any further construction work at the site until it gets the city’s approval.

Two people were killed and 29 injured in the collapse in November last year.

The interdict order was taken by consent when the matter between eThekwini municipality and Rectangle Property Investments came before Durban High Court Judge Dhaya Pillay on Friday.

Advocate Ian Topping, who is acting for the municipality, explained to Judge Pillay that the site was under the control of the labour department owing to the inquiry into the collapse.

Once control of the site was handed back to Rectangle Property, it would have to notify the municipality.

The company would also have to give notification if it intended to carry out further construction and would need approval.

An application was brought by the municipality earlier this year to hold Rectangle Property and its sole director, Ravi Jagadasan, in contempt of court for ignoring interdict orders granted last year by the high court to stop work at the mall.

The city had applied for the interdict because it was concerned about safety, as the company had no approval to begin work on its R208-million development and no approved building plans.

Jagadasan opposed the interdict application, claiming that there was “no danger to the public or those involved in the project”.

The interim interdict was granted in September last year and the order was made final in November, five days before part of the mall collapsed. The stability of the remainder of the mall building has been placed in question by commissioner Phumudzo Maphaha, who is presiding over a labour department commission of inquiry to determine whether negligence led to the mall collapse.

Maphaha has said the mall had further structural problems and that there could be a secondary collapse.

The inquiry is expected to end early next year and the findings would be handed to the National Prosecuting Authority.

The Mercury

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